On December 9, 2011, the IOC recognized Sohn's Korean nationality in his official profile. It cited his efforts to sign his Korean name and stressing Korea's status as a separate nation during interviews. The move was part of the Korean Olympic Committee's repeated requests to acknowledge Sohn's background. However, the IOC ruled out changing the nationality and registered name per official records to prevent historical distortions.[7]

Under orders from Tokyo, Sohn Kee-chung had to compete using the Latin alphabet name of Son Kitei. It is the romanization of Japanese pronunciation of 孫基禎, his Korean name in hanja.[8]

Sohn refused to acknowledge the Japanese anthem while it was played at his award ceremony and later told reporters that he was ashamed to run for Japan.[3] When the Dong-a Ilbo published a photograph of Sohn at the medal ceremony, it altered the image to remove the Japanese flag from his running tunic. The act enraged the Japanese Governor-General of Korea Minami Jiro in Seoul. The Kempetai military police imprisoned eight people connected with the newspaper and suspended its publication for nine months.[9][10]

The Corinthian helmet that was awarded to Sohn Kee-chung, on display at the National Museum of Korea.

For winning the marathon, Sohn was to have received an ancient Corinthian helmet (circa BC 800–700), which was discovered at Olympia, Greece, and later purchased by a newspaper in Athens to give as an Olympic award. However, the IOC believed that presenting such a valuable gift to a runner would violate its amateur rules. The helmet was placed in a Berlin museum where it remained for fifty years. It was finally presented to Sohn in 1986.[11][12] On March 7, 1987, the helmet was categorised as the 904th treasure of South Korea. There was initially a plan to award replicas of this helmet to the winners of the 2006 Sohn Kee-chung marathon,[13] but winners only got a chance to wear a replica.[14]

Sohn died at midnight on November 15, 2002, at age 90 from pneumonia. He was buried at the Daejeon National Cemetery. The Sohn Kee-chung Memorial Park in Seoul was established in his honor.[15] He was also posthumously made a Grand Cordon (Blue Dragon) of the Order of Sport Merit.

The historical Korean drama Bridal Mask (각시탈) referenced Sohn Kee-chung's Olympic win and the subsequent arrest of Korean journalists in its twenty-first episode.[16] In a parade scene, spectators waved Japanese flags to a Korean boxer parading through on a jeep. Despite the joyous occasion, the boxer's face remained staid, never smiling, with the Japanese flag put onto his shirt. The boxer recently won an international sports title, a first for a Korean. However, due to the Japanese occupation, the boxer represented Japan, rather than Korea, and the Empire of Japan claimed that victory.

As the parade continued, suddenly, spectators unveiled their Korean flags, which they got the night before, waved them, and shouted for Korea. In solidarity with the crowd, the boxer then ripped the Japanese flag from his shirt. With tearful eyes and a determined face, he raised his fists and repeatedly cheered with the crowd, "Manseh!", a pro-Korean independence slogan.

Reporter Song took a picture of this emotional scene. The picture appeared in the newspaper's front page the next day, and government officials learned about this incident. The picture also angered Kimura, a high-ranking police officer. At the police station, he ordered officers to arrest the boxer and punish him harshly for disrespecting Japan. Consequently, the police arrested him and the journalists, and the government closed the newspaper.

Sohn also appears in Zainichi author Yu Miri's semi-autobiographical novel The End of August (『８月の果て』） about her grandfather, Yang Im-deuk, who was a rival of Sohn's when they were young.

^ However, Shu's performance was set on a course considered to be short by some[who?] road racing authorities, which means Sohn's world best would have lasted until the early 1950's. (See the Association of Road Racing Statistician's web pages regarding the Boston Marathon and World Best Progressions.)